Rain doesn't dampen the parade

The rain and bids poured in at the auction of 53 Alt Street, Queens Park, on Saturday. The 108-year old, freestanding Federation home "Mayo" sold for $2.51 million, which was $160,000 over reserve.

In need of a full renovation, the deceased estate was one of 572 Sydney auctions listed for the last weekend of the winter season.

With 449 of the results in by Saturday evening, the Domain Group put the clearance rate at 81.9 per cent.

The 108-year old, freestanding Federation home "Mayo" at 53 Alt Street, Queens Park sold for $2.510 million, which was $160,000 over reserve. Photo: Supplied

The three-bedroom, one-bathroom home was popular for its large, level size for the suburb at 442 square metres with a 10.4-metre wide frontage, 42.4-metre depth and triple garage with rear lane access. The location was another main drawcard. It's close to Queens Park, Centennial Park, Bondi Junction shops, transport, schools and beaches.

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Vendor brothers Glenn and Leigh Ladd, whose grandparents initially purchased the home, said it was sad to lose their family footprint in Queens Park after more than a century.

"Our grandparents bought this home in a tontine; 20 families pooled their money and bought or built their home instantly to avoid paying interest. They were third family in line to get their house," Leigh Ladd said.

A three-bedroom renovated townhouse at 6/6 Boronia Street Wollstonecraft sold for $1.185 million, which was $105,000 above reserve. Photo: Supplied

"The house left the family for a while but they purchased it back 75 years ago. I lived here for seven years with my aunt and recently our father owned it."

Glenn Ladd added that he and his brother thought the result achieved was excellent.

"The auction was so entertaining in a good way; you didn't know where it would go.

A north facing two-bedroom Park Regis penthouse with harbour views at 441/27 Park Street, Sydney, sold $116,000 over reserve for $936,000 Photo: Supplied

"The property is valuable so it was refreshing to see the rain didn't affect the sale, it sold a bit better than we thought."

The home was so popular, 138 local young families and a couple of developers inspected, with 30 taking contracts. The initial price guide was $2 million but changed to $2.2 million due to all the inquiries.

Out of the 12 registrations, five pre-registered earlier on Monday, with all the parties active at auction.

A fibro shack set on 923 square metres of land at 97 Sherwood Street, Revesby, sold $260,000 above reserve for $1.110 million Photo: Supplied

As the rain bucketed down, Phillips Pantzer Donnelley auctioneer Jason Pantzer took a first offer of $2 million. It rose mainly in $50,000 increments and tapered off into smaller amounts toward the end. Within 10 minutes it almost sold three times before a new bidder came in.

The new owners are downsizers from Darling Point who loved the location. They said being close to their children and grandchildren was worth the money, time and effort they would spend on the renovation.

Phillips Pantzer Donnelley agent Debbie Donnelley said that as most Queens Park homes have been renovated in the past 15 years, this blank canvas drew vast attention.

"It was a strong result, a touch above what we thought," she said.

"There's not too many homes like this left. The land is level, easy to build on and families loved the proximity to everything; they love the front facade and garden at rear. It's all about the potential.

"It's been a strong winter in the local property market and it will be busy in Spring."

Other Sydney auctions didn't disappoint on Saturday.

A three-bedroom renovated townhouse at 6/6 Boronia Street Wollstonecraft sold for $1,185,000, which was $105,000 above reserve. It was the first home in the street to achieve over $1 million. The 326 square metre property was popular for its location and proximity to Wollstonecraft station and Crows Nest shops. Sean St Clair of Ray White Lower North Shore said there were 12 registrations.

A north facing two-bedroom Park Regis penthouse with harbour views at 441/27 Park Street, Sydney, sold $116,000 over reserve for $936,000. Andrew Colagiuri of Bright Residential Sydney had 12 registrations.

Punters were hopping in south Sydney too. A fibro shack set on 923 square metres of land at 97 Sherwood Street, Revesby, sold $260,000 above reserve for $1.11 million. Investors and developers loved the duplex site for its proximity to shops and public transport. LJ Hooker Padstow agent Heber De Carvalho took a whopping 29 registrations.